Material handling apparatus



3; 5- J. J. NEUMAN MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Original Filed Feb. 23, 1935 Jacofi J/K W L-RW. (B v Patented July 2, 1935 g V UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I 2,006,810 MATERIAL nannnrne ArPan 'r s Jacob J. Neuman, SouthISalem; N. Y

Original application Februaryes.weasel-m1 No. 658,069. Divided and this appliea'tionFebruary .26, 1934, Serial No.712,99 4

2 Claims. (01.198-34) This invention relates to material handling ap- Fig. 2 is a sectionalview taken substantially on paratus, more particularly to trolley hoists and the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. a therewith associated conveyer mechanism 0011- Referring in detail to the drawing, wherein structed and arranged to automatically space the for the purposeof illustration I hauefshow'n one articles being conveyed. This application for applicationand use ofmy'p'resent invention; 'fa- 5 patent is a division of my copending application continuous monorail track 5, preferably though for patent, filed February 23, 1933, Serial No. notneces'sarily, havinglajjcross-sectional.Iebeam 558,069, which has matured into Patent No. form issuitably supportedupon the waterfront 1,938,855, granted January 22, 1935. dock at which the cargoes of vessels are tolbe un- I [1.0 My inventionis illustrated in connection with loaded. A number of electrically controlled'hoists 19 v relatively Simple apparatus e y odigenerally indicated at 6 are mounted injsus-' ties, such as raw sugar, may be expeditiously pended relation from the continuous monorail}: handled at the dock or pier for the purpose of first for longitudinal traveling movement. weighing the same, and then transporting the At a suitable point upon the dock beneath one 1 5 weighed bags or packages to the conveyervmechside of the monorail 5,'the government and mer- 1 5 anism so that the manual labor heretofore inchant scales generally indicated atsjupon which cident to the handling of such materials may be the bags of sugarare to be weighedare suitably reduced to a minimum. I positioned. At a'proper' point so as to stop'the In the illustrated application of my invention traveling hoist and .its was above the scalesS,

2g) trolley hoists are mounted on a pier or dock, asolenoid switch All is mounted at one sideof the single delivery in succession from the low speed trolley t st p;

each hoist having means for raising and lowermonorail 5. A similar switch is also mounted ing a plurality of bags of sugar or other material, at a'suitable point in advance of the scales" S and the load of each hoist is first positioned upon and is .actuated to switch' releasing position by the weighing scale, and after being'weighed, is the solenoid indicated at 44. The circuits of ,2 5 then transported to a position above the conveyer these solenoids 40 and 44. may be closed by the .2 5

mechanism and the load discharged thereon. operation of "a common push buttonor' other My invention has for its object and purpose to type of switch arranged at the office or house of provide means for transporting the bags ofgsugar the scale attendant. i

or other material from the unloading stationem- There is also fixed to one side of the monorail .3g bodying high and low speed conveyers arranged 5, a shoe which operatesa normallylop'en in a nm said w speed conveyer iv ng switch to close the-lowering circuitof the hoist the bags thereon in superimposed relation-and when the hoist arrives atthe unloading posimeans interposed between said conveyers' for tion. A lever 41 at the top of vmonorail 5, opens effecting the paration of the bags and t e a switch-to breakthecircuit thus bringing'the to the high speed conveyer, from which the con- Arranged below one end of the rectangular tents of the bags are adapted to be dis harged trackermonorail 5 is the end of 'a low-"speed into a receiving hopper or bin. load-receiving endless conveyer driven by With the above and o he bj in V w, the the motor 5|. This conveyer at or adjacent one 40 invention consists in the improved material hanof it end ha it upper stretch mn disposed 40 dling apparatus, and in the form, construction in an obliquely inclined plane as at 53 by enand relative arrangement of its several parts as a in the am around th vertically and twill be hereinafter more fully described, serally spaced sprocket 52. Arranged below and trated in the a c pa y drawing and substantially in alignment with the obliquely in- 45 sequently incorporated in the subjoined claims. im d tio 53 of th conveyer 50, i guide 45 In the drawing, wh r n I h v i l r ted chute 54 which guides and directs the sugar bags one si p and Practical bodime t of my upon the upper stretch or run of the high-speed present improvements, and in which similar refconveyer 55 preferably arranged in longitudinal erence characters designate corresponding parts alignment, with the conveyer 50 'and driven by a a 50 throughout the several views,- separate motor 56. The sugar bags or the con- 50 Figure l is a plan view illustrating one instaltents thereof may be delivered from conveyer 55 lation of my present invention and showing the in any suitable manner into the receiving hopper same arranged upon a pier or clock for handling or bin indicated at 51. V the bags of material as they are unloaded from When the hoists arrive above the end of the 55 the hold of the vessel; and conveyer 50, the load of sugar bags is lowered 55 upon the end of conveyer 50, where an operator is stationed to release said bags from the hoist. The sugar bags are received upon this conveyer 50 without regard to distribution thereof and in superimposed relation. When the bags reach the inclined section 53 of conveyer 50, the upper bags fall downwardly thereon over the lower bags which are in direct contact with the conveyer and are guided by the'chute section 54 to the high speed conveyer 55. Therefore, owing to the relatively high speed of travel of the latter 'su'hheavy bags of sugar or other material may be expeditiously handled, weighed and transported to a predetermined destination. The several operations may be carried out with absolute safety, both to the apparatus and to the'necessary attendants "in charge thereof, and the manual labor which has heretofore been incident to the handling of such materials to be reduced to a minimum.

In the foregoing description of the accompanying drawing, I have disclosed one embodiment of the essential features of my present invention, which I believe to be entirely practical for the purpose in view. It is nevertheless to be understood that my invention is capable of embodiment in many difierent environments and may. also be incorporated in various other alternative structural forms, and I accordingly reserve the privilege. of resorting to all such legitimate changes in the form, construction and relative arrangement of the several parts as may be fairly embodied within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

I claim:- 1. In a conveying and distributing apparatus for superposed bags of sugar or the like, two

unconnected and separately organized conveyers,

one comprising a bag-receiving conveyer and the other a bag-discharging conveyer, the former receiving the bags in superposed arrangement from a source of supply and being located in a plane higher than the plane of the latter and having as a, component part thereof a rear end conveying portion inclined downwardly at a sharp angle from the main body of the conveyer and toward the surface of the discharging conveyer, means for operating the receiving conveyer at relatively low speed, means for simultaneously operating the discharging conveyer at relatively high speed, and downwardly inclined stationary means established between said rear end portion and the surface of the discharging conveyer, said means constituting a continuation of said rear end portion and being in surface alignment therewith for receiving bags therefrom and having an overall length sufiicient to provide time in which all of the received bags will by reason of their descending force and weight assemble thereon in direct contact therewith in single row order for discharge one behind the other from the stationary means on which they are so assembled, directly onto the surface of the discharging conveyer, said downwardly inclined rear end conveying portion being effective to give superimposed bags a definitely controlled downward momentum for casting them 01? balance and into proper place in the single line order.

2. In a conveying and distributing apparatus for bags of sugar or the like, the combination of a high-speed conveyer and a separate low-speed conveyer, the latter disposed to convey in the direction of its length in a plane higher than the plane of the high-speed conveyer and having as component parts thereof a horizontal portion and a rear end portion inclined downwardly at a sharp angle from the horizontal portion and toward the surface of the hi h-speed conveyer, a separate slideway device interposed downwardly between said rear end portion and the surface of said high speed conveyer with its surface in alignment with the surface of said rear end portion and with its opposite ends in clearance relation to said respective parts, said low speed conveyer having capacity to convey bags in supcrpose row arrangement and its rear end portion being effective through its sharp downwardly inclined operation to cause definite separation and dislodgment of the superimposed bags so as to enable them to settle into proper alternating positions with the bags in the single row, and said slideway device having an overall course sufiicient in extent to permit the settling bags to come in direct contact with said device so that all of the bags will slide in single row arrangement upon the sliding surface of the said device prior to their successive discharge thereby upon the surface of the high-speed conveyer.

JACOB J. NEUMAN. 

